Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Atmore, stands on the floor of the Alabama Senate on Feb. 5, 2026 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. Albritton Tuesday asked a Senate committee to delay consideration of a bill aimed at resolving a dispute over the state's Internet sales tax. . (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector)
An Alabama Senate committee delayed a vote on a bill on Tuesday that aimed at resolving a battle between cities and counties over the state’s Internet sales tax.
SB 347, sponsored by Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Atmore, increases the frequency of population calculations used to determine how proceeds from the levy, known as the Simplified Sellers Use Tax (SSUT), are distributed.
“We got that bill drafted, it was dropped, (SB) 347, on Thursday afternoon, and then we started looking at the numbers,” Albritton said at the Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee meeting. “And this proves one thing; this matter is a lot more complicated than they thought it was.”
While the bill only changed the frequency, it still produced some confusing results, according to Albritton.
“There’s a circumstance I’m told, where the population numbers went down, but their income went or income went up,” he said during the meeting.
Albritton asked for the delay, saying he wanted people to weigh in and discuss the potential impact of the legislation and how it would affect the revenues that counties and municipalities would receive in a public hearing.
SSUT tax revenues are distributed to counties and municipalities based on formula that takes into account the population of the different jurisdictions. Population estimates for the SSUT are currently done every 10 years; Albritton’s bill would increase it to five years.
All the other components pertaining to the program remain intact, that includes the amount that is distributed to the state and local governments. It also keeps the split between counties and municipalities at 40% and 60%.
Albritton filed the legislation after several municipalities filed a lawsuit in August that alleged the Alabama Department of Revenue was allowing retailers who do not qualify to pay the SSUT into the program and outside traditional sales tax programs that provide revenue to cities. The cities sought to have SSUT declared unconstitutional.
The lawsuit drew opposition from the Association of County Commissions of Alabama (ACCA), who said it would imperil a critical revenue source for county governments. Albritton held legal services contracts during the Contract Review Committee meetings in protest of the lawsuit. In the end, the plaintiffs decided to withdraw the lawsuit in the hopes of negotiating a solution.
Lawmakers and advocacy groups both agreed that the legislation produces winners and losers, with most of the advantage going to the places with the fastest, and the highest, rates of growth in terms of population.
“I have got the newest town in the state of Alabama in my district, the town of Kilpatrick, Alabama,” said Sen. Andrew Jones, R-Centre. “But if some of these folks are talking about who wins and who loses, my folks are getting zero. They are getting zero until the next Census.”
However, other districts will benefit.
“Baldwin County grows by 8,000 people every year,” said Sen. Chris Elliott, R-Josephine. “That is 40,000 people in this five-year period on average. For those who are listening, I think you are on the right track.”
From Alabama Reflector Post Url: Visit
Author: Ralph Chapoco